Reflector



ramiai Nov. ie, rem;

HENRY J. WALSER, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOB TO THE A & W ELECTRIC SIGN,

' COMPANY, OF CLEVELANI), 9HIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

BEFLECTOR.

Application filed January 12, 1922. Serial No. 528,805.

To all whom it may conoern:

Be it known that I, HENRY J. WALSER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cleveland, in the County of Cuyahoga and State -of Ohio, have invented certain ne-w and useful Improvements in Reflectors,.of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to reflectors, and particularly to such devices for use in the illumination of bulletin and bill-boards and signs or in other places Where a vertical surface is to be illuminated.

Reflectors of this kind usually produce a generally circular zone of illumination upon the vertical surface and where a number of reflectors are required, as with a long bill-board, the several reflectors must necessarily be so arranged that their zonos of illumination overlap and morcover, part of the light rays must necessarily pass over the upper horizontal edge of the bili-board. The reflectors are also usually located opposite the top edge-of the board and considerably more distant from the lower portion of the board than from the upper portion thereof.

The present invention aims to provide an improved reflector so formed that the zones of light produced by neighbormg reflectors do not overlap but meet along generally vertical lines and which reflector also prevents any light rays from passing over or beyond the upper edge of the board and also tends to equalize illumination over, the entire surface, and, in efl'ect, causes some light rays which otherwise and according to prior practice have been directed upon the upper half of the board to be directed upon its low'er half to strengthen the naturally weaker illumination thereof.

.Further objects of the invention are in part obvious and in part willappear more in detail hereinafter.

The invention comprises the construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawing, which represents one I suitable embodiment of the invention, Fig. `1 is a sectional elevation, on the line 1 1, Fig. 3; Fig. 2 is an elevation from the right in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a plan view; and F ig.

i i 4 is an inverted plan view in the direction of the arrow A, Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawmg, 1 indicates a cvlindrical lamp socket container or supporting member, in the upper portion of which is suitably Secured, such as by a threaded nipple 2, and a nut 3, a suitable electric lamp socket 4 and lamp 5. A. street .bell 6 is Secured within the upper end of segmental spherical portion 8 from which.

extends downwardly a generall conical portion 9, the axis of the cone o which is inclined to the vertical along the line of arrow A, Fig. 1, and intersects the center of the spherical portion 8 and the axis of the cylindrical member 1. The conical portion 9 is of peculiar shape, being'flattened along what may be called its upper portion, as at 10, so that said upper portion terminates in a horizontally extending straight edge 11. Also, the side walls of the conical portion 9 are likewise fiattened, as at 12, and terminate in straight edge portions 13 which extend along inclined lines toward and away from the surface being illuminated. To more clearly understand the construction of the conical portion 9 it may be stated that Fig. 4 illustrates clearly the configuration Viewed along a line perpendicular to the plane of the edge,-to wit, along the line o of arrow A, Fig. 1.

The upper portion 10 of the cone, flattened as described, forms a screen or curtain to prevent any rays of light being directed or reflected over the horizontal upper edge of the bill-board or sign. Likewise, the plane side portions of the cone, terminating in the straight edges 13, prevent overlapping of the zones of illumination of neighboring reflectors or, in thecase of a reflector at an end of the board, prevent direction or refiection of light rays beyond the end of the board. Again, ithas been found by extensive tests that the spherical portion 8 has the effect of equalizing illumination over the entire surface. In other words, this spherical portion transfers some light rays which otherwise would be directed upon the upper half of the vertical surface to the lower half thereof and therefore strengthens the otherwise naturally weak illumination of the lower half of the board.

Having described my invention, I claim:

A reflector for illminating bill-boards or other vertical surfaces, comprising a lamp socket supporting member, and a reflectlng member depending therefrom, said reflecting member being of combined pyramidal and conical form and .having an upper portion formed as a plane surface sloping downwardly at an'acute angle to the horizontal and terminating in a substantially horizontal straight edge, said surface bein bill-oard uniformly over a wide area up to itsupper edge and to prevent light rays adapted to permit illumination of the the zone'of illumination by substantially straight vertical parallel lines, and said reflecting member also having its lower portion of substantially conical form to condense the light rays on the lower portion of the surface being illuminated.

In testimony whereof I hereby aflix my Signature.

HENRY J. WAL'SER.

in substantially. lstraight vertical edges, thereby bounding 

